Camilla Parker Bowles

Camilla Parker Bowles (formerly Mrs. Andrew Parker Bowles, née Camilla Rosemary Shand) was born in London on 15 July 1947 to the Hon. Rosalind Cubitt, a daughter of the 3rd Baron Ashcombe, and her husband, Major Bruce Shand, an Army officer turned wine merchant.

Mrs. Parker Bowles is a great-granddaughter of famed royal mistress Alice Keppel[?] (Mrs. George Keppel, née Edmonstone), who was the last love of Prince Charles's great-great-grandfather, Edward VII. She is also a great-niece of Violet Keppel[?], a noted socialite and erstwhile writer who caused an international scandal in the 1920s by eloping with fellow writer Vita Sackville-West; both ladies were married at the time.

Parker Bowles is the longtime companion of Charles, Prince of Wales. Their relationship began in 1972 but ended a year later, reportedly after it became apparent that the prince was not going to propose marriage. However, their friendship continued, and the love affair was rekindled decades later, when both parties were married to others. Publicly, that enduring relationship was blamed by the late Diana, Princess of Wales for the break-up of the Waleses' marriage; privately, the princess referred to Mrs. Parker Bowles as the Rottweiler[?].

Camilla Shand was married in 1973 to Andrew Henry Parker Bowles[?], an Army officer who was a friend of Prince Charles and a godson of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother; they divorced in 1995. The couple had two children: Tom (born 1974, a food columnist for Tatler[?] who is a godson of the Prince of Wales) and Laura (born 1979).